Another Starbucks in the area unionizes
A Starbucks in the Texas Medical Center has become the third unionized location in the Houston area after employees took a decisive vote this week, adding to a growing number of stores nationwide that have organized.
Workers at the store at 6400 Fannin voted 8-2 to unionize, according to a Thursday tweet by the Starbucks Workers Union of Houston. Workers announced their intention to unionize in October, citing high turnover rates and insufficient pay increases. The Upper Kirby Starbucks on South Shepherd in September was the first Houston Starbucks store to unionize, and a store in Kingwood followed Jan. 10.
Across the country, according to Starbucks Workers United, more than 275 of the company’s stores have unionized since December 2021, when a store in Buffalo, N.Y., became the first to take that step. Starbucks Workers United, a collective of employees from across the country, has the support of Workers United Upstate, a New York-based affiliate of the Service Employees International Union.
“Once the handful of us that were already interested got to talking, it was pretty easy to get basically the entire store on board,” said Madelyne Austin, an associate at the Fannin store, shortly after the victory was announced.
“We‘re very passionate about getting guaranteed hours and higher pay,” she continued, explaining that store associates have to average 20 hours per week to be eligible for certain benefits, including health insurance: “That is something that is directly affecting people’s livelihoods right now and that we know needs
ing ERCOT and requiring weatherization for power plants, many of which are still being debated today.
Recent winter storms and summer heat waves haven’t caused the same energy meltdowns despite record power demand.
During the 2021 storm event, Jones said groups were talking over each other with differing recommendations as they dealt with different storms.
Now, the state and ERCOT have improved communication channels with each of the generators and the retail electric providers, Jones said.
“One message is going out to consumers,” Jones said. “Those things are incredible.”
Energy producers and grid operators have brought on more generation
and made technical changes to improve the grid, along with backup sources for periods of high demand.
“What we’ve seen in the last year is eight occasions where if we had not made those changes, we would have been in emergency conditions,” he said.
But Jones knows more needs to be done.
At an Energy Outlook conference busy with industry executives at Southern Methodist University on Thursday, Jones said as companies consider investing in renewable energies in Texas, the state will need enough natural gas power to supplement wind and solar.
“Whenever it’s dark and there’s no wind, and that happens several times a year, we have to have that backup generation that’s always going to be available,” Jones said.
Gov. Greg Abbott signaled his support for a
grid redesign last month that aims to improve the system’s reliability by encouraging the construction of natural gas power plants.
The governor’s proposal has faced pushback from grid experts, ERCOT’s independent market monitor and several state senators since it was introduced in November.
“I think what his view is, is let’s keep the renewables coming,” said Jim Burke, president and chief executive officer of Vistra Corp., on Abbott’s proposal.
“But let’s make sure we have an adequate supply generation that we can turn on if the renewables for some reason are not performing at the level that we need for natural reasons.”
Abbott’s support of the overhaul comes as conservative state lawmakers blame Texas’ grid troubles on the expansion of wind
and solar power despite state and federal reports indicating that natural gas power plants also failed during the 2021 winter storm that led to widespread blackouts and killed more than 200 people.
To Burke, the debate on the hill questions how energy’s reliability is rewarded and recognized. Most of the country operates in a capacity market, or people get paid when they bring generation into the market, regardless if it produces energy.
Texas is trying to take a different approach, he said.
“When you produce energy when it’s most needed, we’re going to reward you for that,” Burke said of Abbott’s and the PUC’s push for reform. “If you don’t produce the energy when it’s needed, and you promised that you would, you’re going to be penalized.”